Ties and Lies that Bind Us
by dreamysilverdragon08
Summary: CHAPTER SEVEN IS UP. When Hermione turns 16, she gets the shock of her life: She's adopted. Who are her real parents? What will Harry and Ron say? What surprises are in store? EVENTUAL DM/HG pairing. I promise it's NOT CLICHE! ANTI-CLICHE STORY!
1. Finding Out

**A/N: Hello my darling readers! I'm incredibly excited to unveil the re-written opening chapters of what used to be called "Hermione Adopted?" I do apologize for the re-write having been necessary, but what's done is done. I hope everyone enjoys the new version, and that I can avoid running into any clichés within this particular subcategory of Harry Potter fanfiction.**

Without further introduction, I give you the first chapter of " Ties And Lies that Bind Us"

Chapter one: **Finding Out**

It was an abnormally perfect morning.

_Too perfect_. Hermione Granger thought as she lay in her bed, enjoying the lingering effects of a good night's sleep.

Ever since she returned home for the summer holidays, sleep had been difficult for Hermione. The events of her fifth year were still plaguing her thoughts, making Hermione a bit restless and anxious to return to the wizarding world. She could only imagine how everyone else, especially Harry, was holding up with the untimely death of Sirius Black looming over their heads like a lone storm cloud.

Today, August 4th, was Hermione's sixteenth birthday (A/N: kindly bear with me on the date. It doesn't make much of a difference if she's a month and 11 days older). While celebrating her birthday was a bittersweet feeling this year, Hermione roused herself from bed and got ready for what would be a quiet birthday with her parents.

While she was deliberating between a skirt and jeans, a series of noisy taps on her window pulled her out of her wardrobe debate.

Perched on her window sill was a snowy white owl with a package in her talons, while a feathery blur fluttered around above her head, also carrying a package.

Hermione couldn't help but smile when she saw the birthday parcels from her friends. With everything going on in the wizarding world, Hermione wasn't expecting anyone to make a big deal out of her birthday, but was thrilled to see that they remembered.

Hermione walked over to the window to let the birds in, Hedwig, the snowy white one who belonged to Hermione's best friend Harry dropped her package on the bed and gracefully glided over to Hermione's desk, and waited for an owl treat. Pig, the small twitchy one, who belonged to Hermione's other best friend, Ron, ditched his package on the ground and continued to flutter around Hermione's room.

Hermione brought the packages to her desk and began to read the cards and open the gifts. From Harry, she received an assortment of Honeydukes sweets and a crimson hooded sweatshirt with gold writing that said "Gryffindor Girl!"From Ron, Hermione was given "Hogwarts, A History special edition, Volume II. As well as a variety of Zonkos products.

Also enclosed in Harry's package, was a response letter to the one she had written him a week or so ago.

**Dear Hermione,**

**I'm doing alright. I won't lie to you and tell you I'm doing just fine, but I'm getting through this summer as best I can. I don't think Sirius would want me to sulk around all the time, so I'm trying not to do that. Being at the Weasleys has helped keep my mind off it. Don't worry, Ron and I are working on our summer assignments… we have almost three of them done! I wish you could come to the Burrow this year, we miss having you around. Hopefully we'll see you at Diagon Alley for school shopping. **

**Happy Birthday Mione!**

**--Harry**

Not knowing when she'd have an owl again, Hermione quickly wrote a thank-you note back to the two of them, also informing them to owl her when they were going shopping, and that she'd try to make it then.

Sending Hedwig and Pig off, Hermione put her gifts away and finished getting ready for the day. Settling on the dark wash jeans, she paired it with a grey fitted t-shirt with the image of a rose. She let her hair hang loose, pleased that it was finally beginning to relax… at least a little bit anyway. After examining herself one last time she mentally proclaimed herself presentable, and headed downstairs to breakfast.

_I wonder what mum is cooking. Whatever it is, it smells delicious._

Hermione smiled to herself. Her mum was a great cook all year round, but on birthdays, she went all out.

When Hermione got to the kitchen, she was not greeted the way she expected to be.

Instead of being her usual cheerful self, Hermione's mum was nearly in tears as she was frying up the French toast.

Her father, instead of calmly sipping his tea and making small talk with his wife, was nervously flipping around in a magazine about new age dentistry which he was holding upside down.

Hermione got the oddest feeling that they were just talking about her before she entered the room.

Unable to make sense of what was going on, Hermione broke the stressed silence with the blunt question.

"Does someone want to tell me what's going on? Did someone die or something?" _Please! No more deaths. I don't think I can handle more deaths._

"Oh no dear, it's nothing like that. Everyone's fine." Hermione's mum answered with a fake smile, whilst trying to keep the tears at bay.

"Then what is it?" Hermione prodded.

"Why don't we all sit down and eat your breakfast Hermione. It's your 16th birthday after all." Her father suggested in an equally falsely cheerful tone, completely ignoring her question.

_Now I just know something is up. They're never like this._

"Okay, but only if you promise to tell me what's going on, and why you guys are acting so strangely." Hermione argued

"We'll have that discussion after breakfast. For now, dear, let's just enjoy our meal. I made it especially for you." Mrs. Granger recommended weakly.

Hermione considered this for a moment until she finally agreed.

"Fine."

Breakfast went by in complete silence, except for a few muffles sobs that escaped from Hermione's mum, and the rattling of a tea cup being picked up with her father's shaking hands.

Finally the distressing meal was over, and Hermione's growing anxiety was about to be put to an end. Mrs. Granger was fighting a losing battle with her despondent emotions, with tears streaming down her face. And her husband was visibly full of nerves.

"Okay." Hermione started, pushing away her empty plate. "Breakfast is over. Now you promised to tell me what' wrong. So let's have it."

"Well, Hermione dear, there's really no easy way to explain this, but…" Mr. Granger started, only to be cut off by his wife.

"YOU'RE ADOPTED!" Mrs. Granger cried.

**A/N: So… I decided to keep the overly dramatic ending, mostly because I have a flair for the theatrics and because what I couldn't come up with anything better… ah well. I made the most changes to the beginning of the chapter. I wanted to create more of a contextual setting for the story. The original posted version, I believe, didn't achieve this and I was worried it came off a little too fluffy, like nothing bad had happened in Hermione's life recently, and sadly that's not true (R.I.P. Sirius!) Anyway, I hope my previous readers like this re-written chapter, and that any new readers are enjoying themselves as well. If you are a new reader and you have no idea what this incredibly long rambling author's note is about, here's the "Reader's Digest" version: This story used to be called "Hermione Adopted?". I decided to do a re-write to make things clearer and to fix some of my poorer sections of writing. I also changed the title to something more creative. That's pretty much it.**

**In other news: I positively ADORE getting comments and messages from my readers, so please…humor me. The re-write of chapter 2 should be up sometime this weekend.. latest Monday evening (I have some school work I really ought to be doing).**

**XOXO**

**Dreamysilverdragon08**


	2. Explanations

**A/N1: Call me hasty, or over-excited to be getting into this again, but I finished the re-write for chapter 2 much earlier than expected… now I'm working on chapter 3**

**A/N2: I'm glad most of you are enjoying the re-write so far. To anyone who's somewhat less than thrilled with me at the moment, I am very sorry, but it's too late to turn back now. I promise the re-written chapters will be up quickly, and that I will plunge full steam ahead into the plot. Anyway, I now present you with the re-written version of chapter two**

**CHAPTER 2: Explanations**

"I'm sorry… what?" Hermione asked, clearly in disbelief of what her mother just said.

_Okay calm down Hermione. Clearly, you just hallucinated and miss-heard mum. There's no way you could be adopted. Maybe they're just joking… like a strange twisted happy birthday-ha-ha-we-got-you- kind of joke!_

"You're adopted Hermione. We were not able to have children, and so we decided to adopt. We sent letters out to adoption agencies all over England, both muggle and magical alike, and we got a letter back –" Mr. Granger started to explain.

"Wait! What do you mean both muggle and magic adoption agencies? You didn't even know about magic until I got my Hogwarts letter." Hermione interjected.

" Well… that's not entirely true. You see, your father… Mr. Granger… and I are squibs. We chose to leave the magic world to live as muggles because it was easier at the time. He-who-must-not-be named was in full power, and we decided, that if we could not help fight against him, we would give those who could two less people to have to protect. So we left, and came to live as muggles." Mrs. Granger explained, finally calming down enough to talk clearly.

"Honey, we know this is hard to grasp, and we promised ourselves we'd answer any questions you have as best we can. We don't know all the details, but we'll do our best to give you answers" Mr. Granger offered.

"Okay...let me make sure I understand all of this… You two aren't my parents, you are squibs, but left the magic world because of Voldemort, and I'm adopted" Hermione listed.

Her adoptive parents nodded in affirmation, but stayed silent, letting Hermione process things.

"So… Who are my real parents, and why are you telling me this? Why now? " Hermione asked tentatively, trying to grasp the situation.

At this, Hermione's mum started tearing up again, leaving Mr. Granger to answer the tough questions.

"Dad?"

"We're telling you this now, because as is wizard law, if the real parents of an adopted child wish to take them back, they are allowed to. In your case, you weren't exactly given up for adoption by your birth parents… you were more over, um, taken from them." Mr. Granger weakly explained.

"Meaning what exactly?" Hermione pressed, wanting to know everything and anything to help her get through this logically.

"You were taken from your parents by the Ministry. They did not feel that your parents were the, uh, best candidates to raise a gifted witch like yourself. So they took you and gave you to us. They knew we were looking for a baby to adopt, and they wanted to keep you safe, so it was a perfect match."

"So I was _kidnapped_ by the Ministry, and my family never had a say in the matter? Did they ever try to find me or contact me in any way?" Hermione asked angrily, adding another reason to her list of reasons to dislike the Ministry.

_I can't believe this! How could they lie to me for sixteen years? How could they sit there and listen to me tell them how I was ridiculed for the past five years of being a muggleborn! And the Ministry! What gives them the right to say who can and cannot raise a child? _

"No dear, they had no say in the matter. But, they have finally found out where you ended up—with us—and they—want you—back!" Hermione's mother choked out between sobs.

"Well, who are they? Who are my real parents? When do I get to meet them? What if I don't want to go live with them? Is Hermione even my real name?" Hermione fired out question after question, her curiosity out shining her composure.

"You don't have a choice, and we don't either, I'm afraid. We didn't think we'd ever have to give you up, and we never wanted to, which is why we didn't tell you about this before today. We thought it was best." Mrs. Granger said weakly, her tearful eyes pleading for Hermione to understand.

"Your real parent's names are Damien and Cora Lawrence. According to the letter they sent last night, they'll be here to take you back to your rightful home in about two hours or so. And yes, Hermione is your real name. Your full name is actually Hermione Elizabeth Lawrence." Mr. Granger quietly finished answering her questions.

"TWO HOURS? That's all the notice I'm being given?!?" Hermione yelped, then jumped out of her seat, and bounded up the stairs to her room, fuming and panicked.

**So how was that? I do hope it met everyone's expectations, and if any one has any comments, questions, or concerns please feel free to drop them in a review.**

**Luv ya,**

**Dreamysilverdragon08**


	3. Meet the Parents

**A.N: Thank you to all who reviewed... and in a very timely manner I must say! I appreciate all the compliments and feedback. I am always open to constructive criticism, so if you have a thought you'd like to share, feel free to let me know. **

**With that said, here's the re-write of chapter three!**

Chapter Three : Meet the Parents

Hermione was angry. There was no other way to put it. Angry. Frustrated…..Down right pissed off. She was fuming as she collected her clothes, books, school supplies, and personal belongings, tossing them forcefully into her trunk.

_This is unbelievable! I can't believe that I just have to pick up my entire life, and leave everything behind! Did it ever occur to anyone that maybe I don't WANT to leave? This is so unfair. There has to be a way out. I know! I'll owl Dumbledore! He'll get me out of this. _

_I wish I knew what book to look in to find some things out for myself. I hate not knowing things… I'll have to get to Flourish and Blott's soon to see what they have on adoption laws._

Despite her mental temper tantrum, Hermione resolved to approach her frustrations rationally._ Panicking isn't going to help anything, after all. If nothing else, I'll at least be able to logically accept not having a choice, instead of blindly going along with it. _She hurriedly read over the titles of books on her shelf, seeing if there was anything that would be useful in her quest to get out of this mess.

_No...No... No... Hogwarts, A History? It's helped me in the past, but I doubt it will be useful on this, so no! Ugh there's nothing here that will help me!_

At the end of the bookshelf, Hermione picked up the photo frame resting there. It was one of her favorite pictures. Harry, Ron, Ginny, and she were sitting at a table in the Three Broomsticks, drinking Butterbeer and waving back at her, smiling and laughing.

_What am I going to tell them? Will they understand? Of course they'll understand! I haven't done anything wrong, have I? No, it's not as though I chose this. It's not my fault at the Ministry found my real parents "unsuitable." I wonder why that was anyway?_

While Hermione was musing, she was absentmindedly packing. She paused suddenly as a thought dawned on her.

_Well I suppose Malfoy at least will be put in his place. All these years of calling me a mudblood! I can't wait to see what he does when he finds out that he's been so wrong and that I'm actually a pureblood! Not that blood status matters of course, but it's the principle of the situation._

Hermione heard the doorbell ring downstairs, and her heart nearly stopped. _Oh sweet Merlin! It's time already?! I still have so much left to do! I Haven't even had time to say my goodbyes to mum and dad…. well, the Grangers, I suppose… I wish I had more time with them! They've been spectacular to me… aside from that whole lying to me thing…I mean they're my parents, even if it's not biological…_

"Hermione! Can you come down here, please?" Mrs. Granger called up to her from the bottom of the staircase.

"I'll be down in just a minute!" Hermione called back, now panicking slightly.

Hermione rushed to the bathroom and took one last look at herself to make sure she was not too puffy and wild-looking from her escapade in her bedroom. She then proceeded down the stairs, past the kitchen, and down the hall, pausing before she turned into the living room. Bracing herself for shock when she would turn the corner into the living room and ultimately her future, Hermione let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding when she turned into the cozy-looking room only to find no one there except for Mr. and Mrs. Granger. They were sitting on the sofa drinking tea, with a square, delicately wrapped box sitting on the coffee table before them.

"I don't understand. I thought they were here already! I mean I heard the doorbell ring and everything…" Hermione began to prattle on, but stopped when Mr. Granger put a hand up, signaling for her to calm down so he could explain.

"No dear, the Lawrences haven't arrived yet—that was someone selling magazines at the door—but we wanted you to come down here so that we could give you your birthday present before you….before your real parents arrived." Mr. Granger explained, faltering a bit on the end of his sentence.

He handed Hermione the square, elegantly wrapped package. The gift felt weighty in her hands as she gently tore open the paper. Inside the package was a black leather scrapbook with her first name engraved in silver script on the cover.

Hermione wordlessly flipped through the first few pages, briefly reliving her memories in each of the photographs of her early childhood and adolescence. She looked from her former mother to her former father and back to the book of happy memories, and, with tears in her eyes, sprang from her seat and enveloped both of them in a tight hug, that she wished would last forever. It was, of course, at that moment that the doorbell rang again. Hermione very slowly stood up from the hug, and quietly sat back down on her seat, drinking everything in. Mrs. Granger, who had stated tearing up again at Hermione's reaction to the gift, sat back and tried to compose herself …again. Both Hermione and Mrs. Granger glanced at Mr. Granger, who very reluctantly stood up.

"I guess I'll be getting that then," and walked off towards the door.

Still in the living room, Hermione addressed Mrs. Granger

"You are the best mum and dad I could have ever asked for. Thank you so much for making me who I am today. I love you, and thank you so much for the scrapbook. It's beautiful."

"You are the best daughter I could have ever asked for. I love you, too, and I'm glad you like it." Mrs. Granger replied, smiling a bit at the end.

Their bittersweet exchange was cut short by Mr. Granger entering with two new people, Hermione's parents, Damien and Cora Lawrence.

Damien Lawrence was a tall man, about 6'2", with straight, dark brown hair and light brown eyes. Cora Lawrence was shorter, about 5'5", with beautiful long, straight, light blond hair and crystal blue eyes. Hermione took them in and realized….

_I look absolutely nothing like these people. I have regular brown, curly hair, and dark brown eyes, not straight hair or light brown or blue eyes! Perhaps there's been some mistake! YES! Thank MERLIN! There's been a mistake, I'm not their long-lost daughter! They're not going to take me away! YES!_

Hermione's dark, chocolate brown eyes met Cora Lawrence's bright blue ones. Cora opened her small mouth as if she was going to say something, but quickly closed it and opted instead to fling herself across the room, enveloping Hermione in a tight hug, and cried, as she was actually tearing up…

"My baby! My Hermione! I can't believe we found you! After 15 years of searching!"

Hermione didn't exactly hug the woman back, as she no longer believed that this woman was actually her mother. She patted her awkwardly on the back, and was relieved when Cora's husband, Damien, came over and pried the crying woman away from the slightly scared Hermione.

"Let's not scare the poor girl Cor! I'm sure she's been through a bit of a shock today." Damien took his wife into his arms, trying to console her. Over his wife's head, he looked at Hermione with a fatherly gaze, and said "Hello Hermione, I'm your father."

Hermione gave him a polite smile."I'm not quite sure you are. There must be some mistake, there must be some other Hermione out there, that was adopted by squibs-turned-muggle, and she's your daughter. It can't be me. I mean honestly… I look absolutely nothing like either of you." Hermione reasoned.

"That's because you're under a complicated glamour charm. Your facial structure is the same but your hairstyle and color as well as eye color have been altered. The Ministry didn't want you to be recognizable, but could not alter your overall structure because you were only a baby when the charm was cast." Mrs. Granger piped up from the couch she was observing the scene from. Getting up and walking over, she gave Hermione a reassuring hug, trying to be strong for her adopted child.

"There's been no mistake, we've confirmed it with the Ministry. We didn't want to believe it either, but nevertheless, it's true." Mr. Granger commented softly.

"If you'd like, we can take the charms off now…if you want the Grangers to see what you really look like before we… well, before we go." Damien suggested gently, not wanting to upset anyone by reminding them of what was to happen.

"Um… alright. Okay. Yes. I mean, yes, please. I'd like to know what I really look like." Hermione stammered out, filled with an inexplicable urge to accept and come to terms with her identity.

Damien pulled out his wand and pointed it at Hermione, taking a deep breath he muttered the counter-charm.

"Verus vultus" **(A/N:Latin for "true appearance")**

Hermione felt an odd tingling sensation all over her body, and involuntarily shut her eyes.

When she opened them, she looked at the Grangers only to find them staring, mesmerized, at their former daughter. She looked over to the Lawrences, who were now smiling brightly at her.

"Well? How do I look now?" Hermione asked the room as a whole.

"Why don't you see for yourself, dear?" Cora suggested, taking her wand out and transfiguring a decorative coaster into a full length mirror, gesturing for Hermione to look at herself.

Hermione timidly stepped forward, and looked at herself. She gasped at her reflection.

**CLIFF HANGER!! (yep, I kept that part in!)**

**As always, if you have any comments, questions, or concerns, I'd love to hear from you! **

**Luv ya,**

**Dreamysilverdragon08**


	4. Feels like Family

**A/N: Sorry it's taken a few days to get this up… been busy with school and such. Anyway, here's chapter four:**

"Wow…That's a change…A big change!" Hermione exclaimed.

Cora Lawrence walked over to her daughter. Looking at their images in the mirror, she began to point out all the features Hermione possessed now that she was her true self.

"See, you have long, beautiful dark brown hair, the exact same shade as your fathers," Cora paused to fan Hermione's hair out around her shoulders, "And you have my eyes, a crystal blue, which every first born child on my mother's side has inherited. And you have my nose, and mouth. You have your father's ears. Hermione, my darling, you are most definitely my daughter!" Cora proclaimed, starting to tear up again. She hugged Hermione briefly, and then gestured for Damien to come over to them.

_She's right…I don't know why I didn't see any of this before…What's strange is how I look _right_ now… Everything looks like it _fits_ better somehow…_

Damien stood behind his wife and daughter, and there was a brief moment of silence. Damien put his arms around both Cora and Hermione, making the reflection in the mirror appear to be a picture of a family portrait.

"I'm so glad we found you Hermione," Damien said softly. He then turned to address the Grangers.

"Thank You so much for raising our baby girl! We couldn't have asked for a better outcome other than raising her ourselves."

"It…it was more than our pleasure Mr. Lawrence. Hermione is a very special girl, and I am proud to have raised her as my daughter." Mrs. Granger responded, trying not to sound heartbroken at what was to come next.

"So what now?" Hermione asked bluntly.

"Well, your mother and I will wait for you to gather your things, and for you to… say your goodbyes to the Grangers, and we will meet you in the foyer. Take as long as you need, dear, we are in no rush." Damien explained.

"Yes, of course, take all the time you like Hermione." Cora chimed in.

"Alright, I'll just get my trunk and wand from upstairs, and I'll meet you in the foyer in a few minutes." Hermione said, turning to go out to the hall, and back up the stairs to her old bedroom.

Once up there, Hermione sat on her bed and looked around her room one last time.

… _I love this room. It's been my room for so long! And my bed! I love my mattress! It's perfect for me; it's not too hard, but too soft. _

Hermione rolled off her bed, not wanting to think too hard on what she was leaving behind. She proceeded down the stairs and met the Grangers in the kitchen. Another memory filled place. She first looked to Mrs. Granger, the woman she had called "mum" since she could talk.

"I love you, mum! You are such an amazing mother. I feel so lucky to have been raised by you," She hugged her tightly, and then turned to Mr. Granger.

"I love you, dad! I've learned so much from you! You have helped make me the person I am today. I am so happy to have been your daughter!" She hugged him tightly too, and promised them both that'd she'd write to them, and that they would be seeing each other again.

With that, she picked up her luggage and walked away, down the hall, and through the living room (pausing to slip her photo album into her bag) to front foyer, where her parents—her real ones—stood. She smiled nervously at them.

"Are you ready sweetheart?" Cora asked her.

"As ready as I'll ever be." She replied. Hermione Jane Granger then walked out the door and into her new life as Hermione Elizabeth Lawrence.

**A/N: It would be just plain evil of me to leave this chapter at this point wouldn't it? Good news is: I'm a bit of a devil, but my angelic side is showing through in this case… here's the next part of the chapter:**

Hermione walked outside and parked on the street was a limousine. This was peculiar, given that her new parents were pureblooded wizards. What was more peculiar was that there was a driver who just got out of the front and opened the back, apparently expecting someone to get in.

"Are you alright, Hermione?" her mother asked her, noticing Hermione's puzzled expression.

"Well, yes, but I was wondering… are we going in that?" Hermione asked, pointing towards the limousine.

"Of course we are dear. What were you expecting?" Damien asked his daughter.

"Well, I was thinking we would use side-along apparition… or some other form of magical transportation." Hermione said, as though stating the obvious.

"Yes, that would have been more convenient, using side-along apparition, but there are too many risks." Cora told her.

"What do you mean?" Hermione inquired.

"We can't apparate in the middle of a muggle neighborhood, in the middle of the day, for starters. The noise could raise a lot of questions from the muggles living around here. Aside from that, you could splinch yourself, because you don't know where we are going. We definitely don't want that to happen to you dear." Damien explained.

"Oh, I suppose that makes sense." Hermione conceded. With that, they got into the back of the limousine, while the driver took Hermione's luggage and put it into the trunk of the car.

The driver closed the door, and got into the front seat, and pressed the button to roll the partition down.

"Where to sir? Home, or someplace else?" asked the driver.

"Yes, Renaldo, home it is." Mr. Lawrence replied.

"Alright, home it is then." Renaldo confirmed, and replaced the privacy partition.

"Do you usually use a muggle limousine to get around, or is it just because of me?" Hermione pondered aloud.

"Well, we don't normally use it no, but we have Renaldo and the car available on call. You never know when you might need to use muggle transportation these days. We have some other cars that we drive ourselves, but we thought it would be nicer to pick you up in the limousine, so we can talk without being distracted by the road." Cora explained.

"May I ask a slightly personal question?" Hermione asked.

"Of course, dear, you may ask anything you'd like. I'm sure you have many questions for us." Damien answered.

"Well, I was wondering… my mum and… I mean the Grangers told me that I was taken from you by the Ministry because they decided that you were "unsuitable" to raise me. Well I was wondering, why exactly the decided that?" Hermione asked, slightly apprehensively.

The Lawrences looked at each other, as if deciding mentally, who would explain it.

"That is an excellent question Hermione. I'm afraid it is a rather long answer though." Cora began.

"When you were born, Hermione, a prophecy of sorts was made about you. Well, not a prophecy exactly, but a prediction. It was said, that you would grow up to be a very powerful witch; you displayed magical abilities even at infancy. We were so excited to see how you would grow and excel at magic." She paused here, as if not sure how to go on. She looked at her husband, who nodded, and continued on for her.

" Well, at the time, the Dark Lord, was at the peak of his power. He was looking for more and more followers, and resorted to recruiting as many pureblooded wizards and witches as he could find. We were some of those purebloods.

"Now, what you have to understand is, we had already decided that we were going to be neutral in this war. We refused to side with him and become Death Eaters, especially since we just had a baby, and because we both feel that blood status is…overrated to say the least.

"Is all of this making sense so far, dear?" Cora asked.

"For the most part, it makes sense, but I want to hear the rest of this before I ask questions." Hermione replied.

"What happened after we refused to join ranks with the Death Eaters is what caused our reputation to go down. You-know-who caught wind of how promising your magical abilities were going to be, and he tried everything to get us to join his cause. He wanted you to grow up hating muggles and muggleborns, and become a powerful member of his legion when you were old enough. He did everything short of killing us to persuade us to join him.

" Instead, he decided to take his revenge on us in a different way. He used his Death Eaters to make it look as though we had joined his side, and had stared murdering muggles and muggleborns too. One of them wrote a letter to the Ministry, claiming that we had planned on raising you up to be a weapon for the Dark Lord.

"We fought as hard as we could against it, using up many of our connections to people within the Ministry, but it was too late. Our name and reputation had been destroyed, and we were then deemed "unsuitable parents" for a promising child like you. The next thing we knew, we had half the Ministry's best aurors in our home, demanding that we give you up, and…and, well you know what happened after that." Damien finished.

"How did you manage to get me back, if the Ministry did all of that?" Hermione inquired.

"We never stopped trying to prove them wrong. We managed to convince the right people inside the Ministry to drop the accusations against us, as they never had proof of anything the Death Eaters framed us with, and then a family friend pulled some strings to help us find your whereabouts. We owe them a great deal, but he refuses to take any sort of gratitude, except for the pleasure of our company in a few nights to meet you." Cora explained.

"Oh. That's quite a story." Hermione said, not really knowing what to say or how to feel about the situation.

"I'm sure you probably have more questions than answers now, but I hope that explains things a bit more to you," Cora commented.

"Well, it does clear things up more, but I do have more questions." Hermione responded after a moment.

"Well, ask away, darling, we will answer any questions you have." Damien encouraged.

"What do you do for a living?" Hermione asked, deciding to start with her simpler questions.

"Well, we have a family fortune, large enough that 4-5 generations of Lawrences won't need to work for a living, but we do have jobs to keep us occupied. I used to be an unspeakable for the department of mysteries in the Ministry, but my "position was terminated" after what happened with you, and so now, we run a store selling rare magic and some muggle books. I was offered my job back as an unspeakable, but we are much happier with the store. We both have an affinity for reading," Cora explained.

Hermione stared at them, open-mouthed, looking as if she had just seen a hippogriff fly by the window.

"Are you _serious_!? A rare-book store? How many books do you have? Can I see the store? Oh my gosh! This is amazing!" Hermione fired out question after question, evidently excited about this revelation.

Cora and Damien smiled at each other, glad to know that they made their daughter happy.

"We have roughly 2,500 titles in the collection, but have found a few copies of some of them bringing the total to about 3,000 books in the store all together. And, absolutely you can see the store. You can take any of the books you like. I'm assuming you like to read? It's a bit of a family trait. Your father and I actually met in the Hogwarts library, when reaching for the same book." Cora smiled, remembering that day.

Hermione was beaming by now. She was extremely pleased to know she had so much in common with them already. Whatever nervousness and anxiety she had going into the car, was slowly beginning to evaporate. It was there, but now that the atmosphere was slightly less awkward, Hermione felt more comfortable delving into her next several questions, hoping to discover more similarities.

**A/N: So how was it? I tried to give the biggest back-story I could without becoming boring. I hope you all liked the idea of the rare-books store, as it will play a slightly more pertinent role later on. As always, any questions, comments, or concerns are welcome and will be addressed in the next chapter, or if necessary, I'll email you back. **

**Luv ya,**

**Dreamysilverdragon08**


	5. Settling In

A/N: I am terribly sorry that I've kept you all waiting for so long for the next chapter, School has been kicking my arse in a rather painful way lately, but I'm pushing through it. Here's chapter 5:

Chapter Five: Settling In

Some hours later, after the Lawrences had arrived at their manor hidden in the depths of the surrounding hills, Cora and Damien showed Hermione to her bedroom/suite. Hermione's room was in a word: ideal (A/N: Phantom of the Opera anyone?)

The entire room was done up in shades of blue, pink, and black. She had a giant King sized four poster bed. The bed spread was in pastel shades of blue and pink and was quite possibly the softest thing she had ever felt! On the Bed she had a mountain of pillows, which was amazing, because Hermione's former twin bed was more pillow than anything else, as she preferred it. There were several dressers, all made of Dark Cherry Wood, which matched the hard wood floors. In the center of the room was a large black circular rug. Across from the bed, were two soon-to-be-stocked book shelves and a beautiful dark cherry wood desk and chair.

The Piece De Resistance however, was that this room had its own conjoined bathroom, that was roughly the size of her old bedroom. In the bathroom there was a Jacuzzi tub, a steam shower, marble floors, an ornate stand alone sink, and lots and lots of fluffy black towels stocked in the cupboard, (A/N: and obviously there's a toilet somewhere in the mix, but I can't describe a toilet in a way that makes it sound elegant, so bear with me folks).

"Would you like some help unpacking your things? We have a full house elf staff at the ready for anything you might need assistance with." Damien offered.

"Um…That depends…" Hermione shifted awkwardly.

"On what sweetheart?" Cora asked, perplexed.

"On… how well they're treated. I don't mean to sound rude, but there are some people who treat house elves just awfully, and I think it's just plain wrong. I mean they're living creatures for heaven's sake, and they deserve to be treated with respect. I've actually done loads of research and volunteer work on the house elf front, and I've learned that…" Hermione rambled on until Cora finally up her hand to signal for her to stop.

"Hermione, dear, our house elves have the best care we can give them. They all have normal clothes, wages, and vacations. We agree with you. While it is in their nature to be subservient to humans, house elves do deserve to be treated with common decency." She smiled

"Oh well in that case… I would definitely like to meet them, but maybe later? I kind of want to put my room together myself... if that's okay? Hermione half said, half asked, still not as sure of herself around her newfound parents.

Damien and Cora exchanged glances, smiled and looked back at Hermione.

"…Hermione, my dear, this _your _home, and _your _room for that matter. You don't need to ask our permission to do what you'd like here!" Damien explain, laughing slightly.

Hermione blushed and laughed along with them, feeling more comfortable, but still slightly embarrassed.

"I'm sorry. This is just all really new to me. Thank you for everything, this room is amazing!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Oh, I'm so glad you like it! I spent forever and a day trying to think about what you would like, based on what little I knew of you! When would you like to see the rest of the house?" Cora asked, suddenly very energetic.

"Um, I don't know…" Hermione replied feeling awkward and put on the spot.

"Cor, how about we let our baby girl get settled in first. There's no need to rush anything! How about we wait until after dinner?" Damien cut in, saving Hermione from what could have been yet another uncomfortable moment. (A/N: I would know… that's how I originally wrote it. Lol)

"Oh, of course! You're right, darling, I'm getting over excited I guess." Cora laughed. " I'm sure you've had a very long and trying day haven't you sweetheart?" she smiled at Hermione

Hermione laughed at this.

"Yeah, you could say that! Anyway, after dinner sounds great to me too!" Hermione said, now beaming.

"Alright then, on that note, we'll leave you to it! Tessa, your own personal house-elf, will be along around 6:45 to introduce herself and show you down to dinner, which is around 7, by the way. Have fun setting up!" Damien encouraged, then walked over to his daughter. Giving her a tight, fatherly hug, Damien whispered in Hermione's ear, "Welcome home darling!" and then walked out the door, glancing back over his shoulder once, to smile at his wife and daughter.

Letting her know that she'd be just down the hall in the library if Hermione needed anything, Cora smiled at her daughter, and then made like her husband and left, closing the door behind her, leaving Hermione to her thoughts.

_Maybe it isn't so unbelievable that the Lawrences are my parents. After all, weirder things have happened in my life… finding out I was a witch definitely trumps this revelation. Besides, I have so much in common with them. Cor—I mean mum, and I both have a fear of flying and avoid the topic of Quidditch as much as humanly possible. And Dam—I mean dad, and I share a strong dislike for the allegedly legitimate theory of Divination, but a passion for ancient runes. _

_While I suppose my new, (and dare I say, improved), looks could simply be an illusion charm over my original (to me) looks, instead of the other way around, I must say if this is the real me, I definitely look like Cora… MY MOTHER… more, but I definitely see a bit of Damien… MY FATHER… in me too. I mean my face still looks the same as it always has. It's the same shape and all my features are in the same position, but just the fact that my eyes are now a gorgeous blue color, exactly like hers, and my hair… ahhh my hair! I love it! The color really is the exact same shade as his, but it has the same soft texture and style as Cora… MUM (that's gonna take awhile to get used to). No more bushy disasters for me! Haha! Harry and Ron are going to go crazy when they see me! Speaking of which… how am I going to explain all this to them?_

_I don't think I can fit all of it into a letter. I should definitely meet them in person to explain everything. Yeah, in person is definitely better. I'll owl them to set up a time and place to meet them. _

Throughout this painfully longwinded, one-sided conversation Hermione was having with herself, she was unpacking her things. Efficient as ever, Hermione had everything where she wanted it to be within a half an hour. Glancing at the clock, Hermione saw that she still had another 20 minutes until she would get to meet Tessa and decided to break in her new desk by writing to Harry and Ron.

Pulling out a sheet of parchment and an eagle quill, Hermione paused, and considered for a moment how to phrase her news. Chickening out of bluntness, Hermione decided to be basically as evasive on the details as possible.

**Dear Harry and Ron,**

**I know I just wrote to you but, this is really couldn't wait…**

**I do have something rather… interesting to tell you guys! I would rather explain it all in person, though. I'll just say this: it's not necessarily bad, it's just hard to put into words. This is easily the weirdest birthday I've ever had! When do you guys think you'll be going to Diagon Alley for school shopping? I suspect we'll be getting our letters within the week, so hopefully soon after that? Well, at any rate, please let me know when and where you would like to meet up.**

**Please don't worry about this Ron, I know how you get! Harry, look after him. I look forward to seeing you soon!**

**Love from, **

**Hermione**

Finally feeling satisfied with her choice of words, Hermione folded the letter up. Realizing that she had absolutely no clue where the owlery would be on the Lawrence's grounds, or if they even had an owl to begin with, Hermione got up to head to where she thought the library would be to ask her mother. Before she even took two steps towards the door, she heard a loud popping noise, and then found herself staring into the great big green eyes of a house-elf.

"Hello, Miss Hermione! I is Tessa! I be your house elf! Oh my Miss Hermione! You has grown up so much since I sees you last! I has missed you much Miss!" the house elf babbled.

" Hello Tessa, it is such a pleasure to meet you! Please, call me Hermione. What do you mean "since you saw me last?" Have we met before?" Hermione asked, not recalling ever having met this elf before.

"Oh, of Course! Miss Hermione don't remember Tessa! I was caretaker for you, Miss, when you was a baby, Miss! Before those mean ministry peoples taked you away Miss! Tessa was very angry with them for taking you!" Tessa remarked, looking put out at the memory of it.

"Tessa, please, I insist you call me Hermione! After all, you've apparently known me for a very long time!" Hermione smiled at the little elf.

"Of course mi—I means Hermione. Is there anything I can help you with Hermione?"

"Actually, do we have an owlery? I have a letter I wanted to send to my friends, but I don't know where we keep the owls." Hermione asked.

"Of course we has an owlery! We has everything you needs! But I'm afraid I can't show you where it is right now…" Tessa said tentatively.

"Um… why not?" Hermione asked feeling as though she was missing something very obvious.

"Tessa needs to bring you down to dinner now. Master and Mistress Lawrence is waiting for you Hermione! But I cans send your letter for you Hermione."

Hermione looked at the clock and realized that the elf was right, she was due down for dinner in about five minutes. Not wanting to be late, Hermione handed the letter over to Tessa, and told her to send it to Ron Weasley and Harry Potter at The Burrow. The elf nodded in acknowledgement, and tucked it away into her apron pocket.

" We'd best get going Hermione! Or we is going to be late!" And with that Tessa grabbed Hermione's arm and started to tug her through the unfamiliar manor and to the dining room where Hermione's parents were waiting.

**A/N: mmmk, so this chapter was, in my opinion, painfully long, and a little boring. It, honestly, was just filler. I promise that the next chapter will have more plot in it, and I will get it to you much faster than I did this chapter! As always, any comments, questions, or concerns are welcome, and will be responded to if necessary! Reviews are always welcome!**

**Love ya,**

**Dreamysilverdragon08**


	6. Quality Time

A/N: This chapter has undergone the most re-writing, I think. I hope you all enjoy it, as it is my favorite chapter so far. As per usual, let me know!

On with the chapter:

Chapter 6: Quality Time

Hermione Lawrence woke up with a start. Looking around at her surroundings, she realized that the occurrences of the previous day had not been just a dream. She really had been adopted by the Grangers and, after 16 years of searching, her real parents had come to take her back to where she belonged. Musing on this thought, Hermione suddenly felt a small twinge of longing for the parents she left behind, yet an urge to be closer to the ones she had met just the day before.

Feeling a sentimental urge to write everything down in the journal she'd sporadically documented all of her Hogwarts adventures in since beginning school, Hermione grabbed a quill and ink bottle and the black leather bound book from the drawer of her nightstand and began to pour her thoughts out into its pages.

_**Hello, Old Friend!**_

_**I still can hardly believe that this has happened! I'm Hermione Lawrence. It does have a nice ring to it I suppose… And I get on really well with my mum and dad… Oh My Gosh! I just said mum and dad! Well at least I'm making progress! Mum, Dad and I had lots of fun just walking around the manor. This place is so huge, though I think I have it all down.**_

_**We have four floors. There are two libraries; one on the first floor which doubles as a drawing/tea room and the other is on the third floor, the same floor as my bedroom and theirs is on the fourth. The kitchens, dining room, house-elf quarters, sitting room, and ballroom are all also on the first floor. The second floor has 5 guest rooms, an art gallery, a room that is a mixture of a muggle gym and a magic dueling practice area, and a balcony with a set up for a private out-door tea . The third floor is basically all mine. I have my own fireplace, which, naturally, is hooked up to the floo network. The library on this floor is huge! It's almost the size of the Restricted Section in the Hogwarts Library, (not that I would know or anything…). There is a muggle entertainment room, which was a surprising discovery. There are two additional guest rooms on this floor, and my closet is a room of its own right next door to my bedroom. **_

_**Mum was jokingly appalled last night when she poked her head in and saw that I barely even filled a quarter of the space, and swore that today we'd "fix that problem." I'm not sure what she means, but I have a feeling we're going shopping today… she told me to make sure I got a good night's sleep because I'm going to need it for today…**_

_**That said, I best be getting ready, I'll try to write to more this year I promise!**_

_**Love from,**_

_**Hermione**_

Deciding not to put off the day any longer, Hermione stretched and got out of the incredibly comfortable bed and walked out to her closet next door.

_Hmmm… what should I wear today? Mum hinted that we'd be going somewhere today. I can only assume she means a magical community, so I'd better go with robes. Other than my Hogwarts robes, I only have five other sets. My black and white ones are much too fancy for a shopping trip; it's too warm for my red, purple, green, and grey ones; so I suppose that leaves me with the blue one…it's a bit old and perhaps a tight… Oh well, I guess I just have to work with it._

Selecting the dark blue robe from its hanger, Hermione decided to pair it with a black A-line, knee length skirt, a short-sleeved, sky-blue lace lined blouse , and black wedged sandals. Deciding to just leave her long brown hair down today and scrap the make-up all together, Hermione skipped down the two flights of stairs to the dining room. She found a large breakfast spread of toast, fruit, eggs, bacon, waffles, orange juice, coffee, tea and pumpkin juice. Sitting at the table was just her mother, who was enjoying a cup of tea and a waffle with strawberries on top while reading the Daily Prophet.

Seeing Hermione walk in, Cora looked up from the article she was perusing and greeted her daughter, "Good morning Hermione! How'd you sleep last night?"

"Really well, actually! That bed is so comfortable!" Hermione said, while sitting down across from her mother and starting in on breakfast.

"That's good to hear. I actually charmed it so when you went to sleep it would be at the right level of comfort for you. I wasn't sure if you preferred a hard or soft mattress, so I just used the charm instead of getting something you didn't like." Cora explained.

"Really? I've never heard of that charm before."

"Oh, I read it in a book of house-hold charms. Really useful book, it's shown me how to do a lot of things around the house that I never would have thought of."

"Like what?" Hermione asked, now enthralled in learning something new.

"Well, the wood furniture never needs dusting, because I put a self-dusting charm on it. It's just one less thing for the house-elves to have to do. All you need to do is point your wand towards the wooden object and flick your wrist a little to the right when you say the charm, which is 'statly pulsary.' I believe that a witch in Ireland came up with it."

"Interesting. Do you still have the book? I'd love to read it." Hermione asked.

"I believe it's in the third floor library. I'll have a look around later and find it for you." Cora replied, smiling at her daughter.

"Excellent. So, where's… Dad?" Hermione asked slowly, determined to actually say the word 'Dad' instead of stuttering over it.

"Oh, I'm afraid he had to leave early to get to the bookstore. We have some clients coming in today to pick up their selection. Apparently they're collectors of famous wizards' and witches' journals and memoirs. They're picking up three books. _The Life and times of Wanda Babcock, _who tried to overthrow the Ministry of Magic in Belgium…twice; she nearly succeeded on the second time, but an auror hit her with a nasty bat bogey hex and that was the end of that."

"My friend Ginny Weasley does a pretty nasty bat bogey hex too! I've never been on the receiving end, but her brother, Ron, one of my other best friends, has been. I don't think he so much as looked at her for a week after that." Hermione smiled at the memory.

Cora's smile faltered a bit at hearing the surname of her daughter's best friends. The Lawrences had never gotten on well with the Weasleys in general, but after what happened with the ministry, the Weasleys absolutely loathed them. Deciding not to bring it up, Cora just kept on about their new clients.

"Yes, well… anyway; they are also picking up the diary of Vladimir Pertrovsky, a Russian wizard, who tried to start up a goblin gang to do his evil bidding, but ended up being outsmarted by them in the end. The goblins actually turned against him and ended up locking him away in a trunk in his attic, with a lock that could only be opened by another goblin…"

Cora and Hermione prattled on together for the better part of the morning, moving from the dining room into the first floor library to have some tea and discuss, (what else), books.

By the end of their conversation, each had a hefty list of titles that the other claimed they just _had _to read!

"Oh sweet Merlin! Look at the time! It's nearly 11! We're going to be late!" Cora exclaimed, jumping up out of her chair suddenly.

"Late? Late for what?" Hermione asked, confused.

"Well, last night when I saw the how horribly empty your closet was, I panicked and made an emergency appointment with my designer, Alice, for today at 11:30! I was thinking we could drive if we left early enough, but it's all the way in the center of London! We'll never make it in time, driving! Such a shame because I really thought a drive would be fun for us to talk some more!" Alice's Attire was kind of like the Leaky Cauldron, it looked like an empty, abandoned store to muggles, but was a top-of-the line wizarding fashion store.

"Oh. shopping …wow… well that's too bad then, we can always go some other time, when we're more on schedule." Hermione offered, happy to postpone the inevitable as long as possible.

"Don't be silly dear. We'll just use the floo network! Alice's shop is set up for it, so we can just pop over there in a few minutes! I'll just go and grab my bag and my coat, and we'll be off! I'll be back in a flash!" Cora said, excitedly, and left to go get her things.

_Shopping… excellent, I'm oh so thrilled. Well, I suppose it won't be all bad…maybe. I just hate trying things on! It always makes my hair messed up afterwards… well I suppose that was my old hair, but still. Things never fit right, and the sales people are always so snobby! I guess I can go through with it for mum's sake; since she seems so excited..._

Hermione mused on her distaste for shopping and fashion in general for a minute more, then her mother came back into the room carrying a rather large black distressed, studded leather bag, with a charcoal gray sweater draped neatly over her arm. Trailing behind her was Tessa, and another elf, who's name she learned last night was Trinky, her mother's personal elf.

"Tessa and Trinky will be apparating after we leave to take our selections home after we're done, so that we won't have to cart them around with us afterwards. I was thinking that after shopping, we'll have lunch, and if you'd like to, we could stop by the bookstore to see your father. Sound good?"

"Sounds brilliant! I'd love to see the store!"

"Excellent! Shall we go then?" Cora gestured towards the library's enormous fireplace.

"We shall." Hermione said, stepping forward into the flue with her mother.

Cora grabbed a pinch and a half of powder and said in a strong, clear voice, "Alice's Attire in London," and the two were engulfed in green flames for a moment before disappearing.

When they arrived at Alice's Attire, The mother-daughter pair were greeted by a rather short and chipper young woman. Hermione presumed this woman to be Alice. She was about an inch shorter than Hermione, and had short black hair, styled in a pixie cut. She wasn't exactly a nervous person, just very excited and bouncy.

" Cora! Hello darling! It's been ages since I last saw you!" Alice exclaimed, hugging the woman tightly.

"Alice! It's been less than a week!"

"Too long! Like I said. And who might this be?" Alice said, turning to Hermione.

"Alice, this is my long lost daughter, Hermione. Hermione this is Alice, the most talented fashion designer in the whole wizarding world." Cora introduced.

"Oh, it's so nice to meet you!" Alice surprised Hermione by coming forward to hug her as well.

"…likewise…" Hermione responded, hugging the strange woman back.

"Well let's get started, shall we?" Alice said, leading them into the back rooms of her studio. Around the walls were marvelous sketches of different designs, that all kept rotating around so you could see the full 360 degrees of any design.

"What exactly are you looking for?" Alice asked them, all business-like now.

"Well, I want a completely new wardrobe for my daughter here. I looked into her closet last night, and found that it wasn't even a quarter of the way filled!"

Alice gasped, and looked horrified. For a moment, Hermione thought that she was joking, but then realized that both Alice and her mother were honestly appalled at her "lack of clothes."

Recovering from shock, Alice and Cora began excitedly discussing what things she'll need and for what occasions, and what season Hermione is, and all sorts of things Hermione didn't understand completely.

_I really don't understand what the big deal is. I mean that closet is huge! It's practically the same size as the Gryffindor common room! I'm amazed I was even able to fill a quarter of it! _

"What do you think Hermione?"

_Wait, what did mum just ask me? Oh, I don't want her to think I'm not thankful for what's she's doing…. I guess I'll just agree, and see what happens. What's the worst they could be planning?_

"Um… that sounds great…" Hermione tried her best to sound excited, but if she was unconvincing, Alice and her mother didn't seem to notice.

"Oh, yes! A complete fitting! And don't you worry, I'm bringing out all the stops! You, my dear, are going to look fabulous when I'm finished with you!" Alice exclaimed, before jumping out of her seat and dancing away to retrieve something.

_Lovely…a fitting… that means fitting needles… and standing on a stool for hours… what have I gotten myself into?_

She returned a moment later pushing a full length mirror with one hand and her wand, a quill, a measuring tape, and what looked like design sketch pad.

"Well, come on over dears, make your selves comfortable." Alice encouraged, gesturing to what looked like a sitting room, filled with an odd eclectic mixture of squashy sofas arranged in a semi-circle. Alice placed the mirror in the middle of the room, while Hermione and Cora took their seats.

"Alright, well, first things first; Hermione, if you could please stand up, I need to get your measurements."

_Well, here goes nothing…_

Hermione stood up, and Alice flitted around her body, taking note of Hermione's measurements on the top of her sketch book.

"Alright, dear, now look in the mirror, and do a slow spin for me please." Alice requested.

Not sure when the torture was going to start, but willing to put it off as long as possible, Hermione did as she was asked, and slowly began to turn. While she was doing so, Hermione noticed Alice pointing her wand from Hermione, to the mirror, to her sketch book, muttering something under her breath.

When Hermione finished her slow circle, she looked at Alice for further instructions.

"Alright. I have what I need from you now; you may take a seat again." Alice said cheerfully.

_Huh? Wait! What about the torture?_

"Ah, this is my favorite part, Hermione! You'll enjoy this; I just love watching Alice work!" Cora gushed.

"And now, the fun begins!" Alice announced.

A/N : I Considered leaving it here, but… nah, that'd be too short. And too boring… on with the story!

*Three hours later*

_That wasn't painful at all. I'm amazed. I… actually… enjoyed that! It was fun! I almost want to do it again! I have a complete new wardrobe, and I didn't have to try on one scrap of clothing! _

_Well…technically I did, but it was my reflection, not me! I was completely amazed when Alice explained to me that the charm she was doing when I was turning around in front of the mirror was so that the designs in her sketch book would appear on me that was in the mirror. It was awesome to see all the angles of the outfits too. "To ensure complete satisfaction!" as Alice put it. And I found myself really liking Alice's designs too, even some of the, erm…not so conservative ones._

_According to mum, "Alice has absolutely flawless taste! Anyone lucky enough to be dressed by her, always looks amazing." She made me outfits for just about any occasion, both in the magic and muggle worlds. _

_That's another thing that amazed me. Once I approved an outfit that I liked, boxes would appear containing the individual pieces of that outfit. That's where Tessa and Trinky came in. They collected the boxes and popped back and forth between Alice's and home, under the instructions that they needed to unwrap the packages and organize them in my closet. "You know what I mean" mum said. I assume they'd done this for her closet in the past. _

_I honestly don't even know how many things I picked out, and I hope I didn't go overboard. Mum never asked how much anything was, and after we finished up, Mum just handed over her Gringotts vault number to Alice's assistant without a second thought. _

Hermione and her mother decided to have lunch at a café on Diagon Alley, flooing there from Alice's store.

"So, are you having fun?" Cora asked.

"Are you joking? I'm having so much fun! Alice's was something else! When she said 'fitting' I assumed it would be the old fashioned way: pins, and hours of standing on a footstool. I never expected it to be as fun as it was!" Hermione laughed.

"Yes, Alice's is always a fun experience. I've been going to her for years, and she has yet to disappoint!" Cora laughed along with her daughter.

"So, what's next on our agenda?" Hermione asked

"Well, do you still want to visit your father at the bookstore? Or are you too tired after all the excitement?" Cora asked.

"No! The bookstore sounds perfect! Are you sure dad won't be too busy? I mean, I wouldn't want to interrupt…" Hermione inquired.

"Of course he won't be too busy! It was his idea that you come and visit today anyway!"

"Oh. Well, alright then! Let's go!"

After lunch, Hermione and Cora flooed to "Lawrence's Rare Book Emporium"

They arrived in a room resembling a receptionist's office. Behind the desk, was Damien, reading over a sheet of parchment, making marks on it with a quill every so often. When, Cora and Hermione arrived through the fireplace, he looked up, and a wide smile spread across his face.

"There you two are! I was wondering if you were ever going to get here!" Damien laughed, getting up to kiss his wife and hug his daughter.

"I'm sorry we're so late darling, but we went to Alice's this morning, and she gave us her usual royal treatment! You know how long that can take. Besides, perfection cannot be rushed!" Cora laughed, half-heartedly chastising.

Damien smiled at his wife and raised his ands in mock-defeat

"Well, as long as you had a good time darling, I suppose that's all that matters." Damien said, pecking his wife on the cheek.

"How about you, did you have fun today too, my dear?" Damien asked Hermione.

"Oh yes! I had loads of fun! Alice's was amazing! She made shopping for clothes so much fun!"

"Well, good! I'm glad you two got to spend some quality mother-daughter time together this morning!" Damien said.

"Speaking of which, how about you and Hermione have some quality father-daughter time this evening. I know Hermione wants to see the bookstore, and I have lots to do before tomorrow night!"

"That sounds good to me! But, what's going on tomorrow night?" Hermione asked.

"Oh, we're having a dinner party with our friends in the Ministry. The ones that helped us get you back and clear our names. I can't believe I didn't tell you this already! Yes, they'll be arriving tomorrow evening at six. And I just have so much to do! I suppose I'd best be off now!" Cora said, checking her watch.

"Make sure you give her the grand tour darling! I don't want her to miss anything!" Cora told Damien before hugging and kissing him goodbye.

Cora turned to Hermione, and hugged her tightly.

"I had so much fun with you today! I'll see you later sweetheart!"

"Bye, mum! I had fun today too!" Hermione said.

With that, Cora apparated out of the store, a tear of happiness in her eye.

Damien turned to his daughter.

"So, are you ready to see the books?" Damien asked in a mysterious tone

"I was born ready!" Hermione laughed.

"That's my girl! Alright, if you're sure… if you want the full effect, then it's best to close your eyes, go into the middle of the room, and then open them. That way you're surrounded."

"Yes, but how would I get to the middle of the room if my eyes are closed?" Hermione questioned lightly, pointing out the obvious.

"Oh, don't worry about that, I'll lead you. I promise not to walk you into a wall." Damien smiled.

"Um, alright. I'm game. Let's do it."

Damien carefully guided Hermione into the store room with his hands over her eyes. Walking her into the center of the room he told her to close her eyes and wait for a moment.

"I'll be right back, I just need to bring the lights up" Damien told Hermione, before planting her carefully in place.

Hermione, nearly hysterical with anxiety and excitement, had to use every ounce of will power to keep her eyes closed.

"Alright. Open your eyes" Damien directed.

Hermione's eyes opened, and she gasped. Surrounding her were thousands and thousands of books just begging to be read.

Hermione couldn't help herself. She began smiling and giggling like a crazy person.

"Do you like it?" Damien asked, smiling at his daughter.

"Like it? Are you kidding? ... Dad... I LOVE IT! This is amazing!" Hermione exclaimed, throwing her arms around her father.

Damien began to show Hermione around the store. Showing her each section and talking about the books in each genre. He showed her all of his favorites, and she pointed out a few that she actually had read before. By the end of the evening, Hermione's pile of books she just _had_ to read nearly tripled from where it was this morning.

Damien encouraged her to take whatever she wanted with her. Knowing she could always come back for more, Hermione selected three titles: "Magical Sleuth: Magical Mysteries never fully explained," the original copy of "Ancient Chinese Wizarding Legends," and "The Handwritten Diary of Matilda Cole, a 'victim' of the Salem Witch Trials."

"Those are excellent choices! I warn you about 'Magical Sleuth' though; it tends to suck you in. A few people have even attempted to solve some of the mysteries in there. It never ended well for them, I'm afraid." Damien added wistfully.

"I promise to be careful, dad." Hermione smiled.

"I suppose we'd best be off then. Your mum will be expecting us soon for dinner."

Hermione turned to her father and smiled at him, "Thank you so much dad, this has been a truly amazing day."

Damien fought back the tears that wanted to escape his eyes and smiled back to her, "I'm so glad my beautiful daughter, now lets get home to dinner before your mother has my head. You go through the floo first." He kissed her forehead and stood back.

Hermione walked to the fireplace and left. Damien wiped away the escaped tear from his eye,

_My daughter… she's finally come home._

He stepped into the fireplace and flooed to his house to have a dinner with his finally complete family; his amazing wife and beautiful daughter.

**A/N: So what do we think? I thoroughly enjoyed this chapter, and I hope you did too. As always, please review, as I am anxious for your feedback. **

**XOXO**

**Dreamysilverdragon08**


	7. Eventful

A/N: Thanks so much for all the positive feedback. I'm glad everyone enjoyed it, and for the record, I got the idea of Alice the fashion designer from Twilight's Alice the vampire. I thought that readers of both series would enjoy the addition.

On with the story:

**Hermione Adopted?**

Chapter 7: Eventful

_I can't believe how easy this transition has been. It's been under a week since I learned my true parentage and I already feel comfortable living this life. It feels…natural. Like I've been with my parents for my entire life. As it should have been. I still love the Grangers, and I always will, but I'm almost innately drawn to Cora and Damien. It feels like I've been biologically programmed to love them. And it's not just them. This house (well, manor), feels like home. I feel… right… being here. Then again, maybe I'm just reeling from the day I had. So much happened in just a few hours. _

Hermione mused on about her day while playing with her long dark brown hair, trying to decide how to style it for the dinner party that night. Damien and Cora had a few business meetings during the day and had left Hermione to her own devices following an… eventful breakfast.

During their morning tea and pancakes, a tawny owl came through the window carrying a rather large package. The owl landed directly in front of Hermione, who recognized the owl as being a Hogwarts one.

Attached to the lumpy package was a letter addressed to Hermione Lawrence.

"Who is that from sweetheart?" Damien asked

"I think it's from Professor Dumbledore... I don't know how he already knows about all of this yet, but I suppose he knows everything," Hermione smiled while opening the letter and reading it aloud.

**Dear Miss Lawrence,**

**It has come to my attention that you have recently discovered your true heritage. I give you my sincerest best wishes in growing together as a family. As such, given your new lineage and identity, I think it best for you to be resorted. Enclosed is our school's trustworthy sorting hat. Try him on once again, and I'm confident you'll be placed in the house where you, Hermione Lawrence, belong. Hermione Granger was a time proven Gryffindor, I'm curious to see where Hermione Lawrence ends up. **

**Please tend to this matter as soon as possible, so that the proper Prefect selections can be made for each house. Send the sorting hat back with the school owl, and he will inform me of your placement. **

**Sincerely, and, again, best wishes,**

**Albus Dumbledore.**

**P.S: Don't worry, the sorting hat's long speeches are strictly reserved for the beginning of the year. **

Hermione looked from her parents to the packaged sorting hat. She had never really thought about changing houses. It was assumed that once you were sorted, that's where you were meant to be.

_Well, I've come this far with changes, I might as well go all the way. _

"So… what are my options? What house were you in?" Hermione asked, silently hoping that it was Gryffindor.

"Actually, we were in separate houses. I was in Ravenclaw, and your father was in Slytherin." Cora smiled, eyeing her husband mischievously.

_Oh. I guess could live with Ravenclaw. But the idea of me in Slytherin is just ridiculous! _

"Well here it goes," Hermione sighed, unwrapping the sorting hat.

The lip of the hat twitched and then wheezed before speaking.

"A resortment in order and a new life begun, put me back on and in your proper house is where your placement shall be redone…"he trailed off, and wheezed again. **(A/N: I fail at coming up with clever rhymes, please bear with me).**

Hermione gently picked the hat up from the table, and gingerly placed it on her head. Immediately the hat began talking to her inside her head.

"_I believe we've met before Miss Granger, or I suppose its Miss Lawrence now. Let me see here. You were last a Gryffindor, but that hardly seems fitting now. While brave you may be, you are also quite clever, cunning even. Slytherin would be the place for you, but you seem much too against it. If not Slytherin then, let's see about putting your wit to good use. Let's go with… _RAVENCLAW!" the hat shouted and then resumed its limp slumber. Without waiting for it to be re-wrapped, the Tawny owl swooped down and took the hat back, before soaring out the window again.

"Congratulations Hermione!" Cora cried and pulled Hermione into a tight hug. Over her daughter's shoulder, Cora smiled cheekily at her husband. "See! I told you she took more after me!"

Damien rolled his eyes playfully but smiled at his wife and daughter. His smile receded a bit when he saw the worried expression on Hermione's face.

"What's wrong Hermione? You look a little…put off." Damien noted.

"It's just strange to think about; being in another house. I've been in Gryffindor for so long, I'm worried that I won't get on as well as I did before. I'm also a little worried about what my friends will think. They're going to be confused enough as it is when I tell them about all of this..." Hermione trailed off gesturing around her.

Cora and Damien exchanged a worried look.

After a brief moment of silence and contemplation, Cora gave Hermione another small hug and a sympathetic smile.

"Darling, the way I see it, is if they're really your friends then they won't let something silly like what house you're in or what your last name is change anything. You are still you. You're still Hermione. Whether you're a Gryffindor or a Ravenclaw, a Granger or a Lawrence, you're still the same person you've always been, sweetheart." Cora concluded, smiling warmly at her daughter.

"I suppose you're right. It's just a lot of changes to take in," Hermione sighed. "I know I said I wanted to go to the bookstore with you again today, but would you mind if I just stayed here today? Maybe I'll settle in a bit more on my own," Hermione said slowly, not wanting to offend them.

"Of course you can, darling. Your mother and I will mostly be doing boring business stuff today anyway." Damien said matter-of-factly.

"Speaking of which, we'd better head off soon dear, we have that appointment in a half hour or so," Cora reminded him, rising from her seat.

"Oh yes, of course, I almost forgot about that. We're having a meeting with our accountant. The goblins are making an exception for us and sending a representative to the bookstore instead of us having to go to Gringotts." Damien explained to Hermione.

"Oh. Well that sounds… fun… I think." Hermione commented, suddenly glad she wasn't going. The Gringotts goblins always sort of freaked her out for some reason.

Damien chuckled at his daughter's reaction, and then stood up to join his wife.

"Well, have fun today Hermione! Call for Tessa if you need anything. The other house elves should be busy getting things prepared for this evening. But she will be available for you for anything you might need. We'll be home around five o'clock to start getting ready ourselves. Feel free to floo over to the bookshop if you get bored or lonely, or both…" Cora babbled, while Damien wrapped his arm around her waist and guided her over to the fireplace.

"Why don't you go through first dear?" Damien interrupted, "I have a feeling that if I go first then you won't be coming along at all," he teased.

"Oh alright! Like I said, have fun today dear, and I'll see you at five." Cora smiled before stepping into the fireplace. "Lawrence's Rare Book Emporium" she said clearly, before disappearing into a flash of green flames.

Damien shook his head at where his wife was just standing, and smiled to himself. He often wondered where his wife got all her energy from. Chuckling to himself, he turned back to Hermione, who was also giggling a bit about her mother's farewell.

"Enjoy yourself today darling. We'll see you later." Damien grinned at Hermione before stepping into the fireplace after his wife.

"Bye. Have a good day!" Hermione said as he, too, disappeared into the Floo network.

Following breakfast, Hermione spent her morning and afternoon further exploring the manor.

Tessa proved to be a great help in suggesting things for her to do and explore. Hermione suspected that she was acting on her mother's orders, because almost as soon as Hermione had finished with something, Tessa appeared and recommend something else.

The little house elf encouraged her first to take a walk in the gardens outside, as she had yet to see them. Simply put: They were beautiful. Tessa gave her a little tour.

"Here, Miss, is Mistress Lawrence's favorite spot for afternoon tea, miss." Tessa explained, as she led Hermione to an elegant white wicker patio set surrounded by gardenias and pink and yellow roses. The aroma was fragrant, but not overbearing. The white linen canopy provided the perfect blend of shade and sunshine. Hermione understood why this was her mother's favorite place in the garden. It matched her personality: sophisticated but open and charming at the same time. Hermione could just imagine herself reading out here while on holiday from school, enjoying the quiet.

After the tour of the rest of the garden, including the small Quidditch pitch, Tessa insisted that Hermione spend time in the newest edition to the manor: the muggle entertainment room.

"Master Lawrence and Mistress adds this room especially for you Miss. They says it are for you to enjoy Miss."

The muggle entertainment center was any muggle teenager's dream room come true. There was a wall sized screen and projector hooked up to a VCR/DVD player (**A/N: technically DVD players did not come out until around 1998 in Europe, but that's a small detail)**, Playstation, and Satellite TV. A bookshelf lined half of the right side wall, completely stocked with movies and games. There was a mini kitchen and pantry that housed a variety of sweets, snacks, and drinks. Behind the deep blue plush sofas, there was a pool table, and air hockey table.

Hermione knew she'd have fun playing against Harry , and that'd they'd both enjoy teaching Ron how to play muggle games as payback for losing to him so many times at Wizard Chess.

She was a little touched by her parent's respect for her muggle upbringing, and was also a bit surprised at how much they had put into this room, just for her. Not to mention how puzzled she was over how they knew what to get for a muggle teenager.

Not wanting to linger in the entertainment room without someone to enjoy it with, Hermione wandered out to the library on her floor and began to skim through books again. After perusing for about an hour, Hermione finally settled on three books and sat down on a white suede chaise to begin her reading.

Hermione was half way through her first book, when Tessa appeared with a tea tray and pastries, as well as a few letters.

"Tea for you Miss, and these just comes for you, Miss." Tessa said, setting everything down on the coffee table.

"Thank you, Tessa." Hermione said, sitting up. The little elf bowed and with a pop disappeared.

Pouring herself some tea, Hermione studied the four letters. Three were from Hogwarts. One she knew to be her usual letter, with her supplies list enclosed. The other two were thicker and one of them had an oddly shaped bulge to it. The fourth letter was simply addressed to "Hermione" and she instantly recognized Harry's untidy handwriting.

Putting the other letters aside, Hermione tore into Harry's response, eager to read his and Ron's reply.

**Dear Hermione,**

**I won't say we're not a little worried, but we—well I anyway, trust you'll tell us what's going on in due time. We got our letters today, and you'll never guess what's happened. I'll tell you all about it when we see you. We're heading to Diagon Alley on Tuesday to get our supplies. Owl us if you can meet us at Flourish and Blotts around noon. **

**Can't wait to see you,**

**Harry**

Hermione wrote a quick response, telling Harry that Tuesday should work for her, but if anything changes she'll let him know. She couldn't imagine her parent's having a problem with that date. Thinking about seeing her best friends and, of course, about the books she'd get to buy, Hermione was eager to open her other three letters.

Her booklist was what she was expecting, with the exception of her DADA class, which, as was tradition, was odd and different from her previous years' textbooks.

Hermione opened the next letter, and had to stifle a scream when she realized what it was. Her O.W.L. results were in. With everything that had happened over the past days, Hermione had all but forgotten she was expecting them.

Suddenly overwrought with anxiety, Hermione unfolded the letter with shaking hands, hoping for the best, but dreading the worst.

Hermione couldn't help, but let out a squeal of delight. She had earned 11 O.W.L.s.—Ten 'outstandings' and one 'exceeds expectations'.

Tessa appeared immediately after Hermione's cry of joy, with a worried expression.

"Is Miss alright, Miss?" she asked tentatively.

"Oh, Tessa! Everything is more than alright! Could you please bring me my owl? I have great news to send my parents!" She cried, overjoyed.

Tessa still looked a little wary, but nodded and dissapparated with a crack.

Hermione reached for her other letter, wondering what else Hogwarts could possibly have to tell her.

Sliding her hand into the envelope, she felt something prick her finger. Pulling out the offending object, Hermione let out another squeal of delight. It was a Ravenclaw Prefect's badge.

Tessa appeared again, this time with a bewildered owl resting on her arm.

"Is Miss sure Miss is alright?" Tessa asked worriedly.

Hermione laughed, "I'm sorry Tessa. Yes, everything's fine." She smiled, relieving the elf of the owl, who fluttered away from both of them and perched herself on the nearby book shelf.

Tessa gave her a weak grimace. "Is there anything else Miss is needing?"

Hermione shook her head and Tessa popped away again.

Returning her attention back to the envelope, Hermione pulled out the enclosed letter.

**Dear Miss Lawrence,**

**As your new head of house, I would like to congratulate you on your outstanding academic performance this past school year. While you may have earned those grades under a different name, your achievements still rank you the top of your year for your house. Due to your excellent record, I would like to offer you a position as a sixth year prefect for Ravenclaw. Enclosed is your prefect's badge. Please meet your fellow prefects as well as this year's head boy and head girl in the second compartment on the Hogwarts express for a brief orientation. **

**My sincerest congratulations,**

**Professor Flitwick **

**Head of Ravenclaw.**

Hermione was stunned. Today had been going so amazingly well. She was certain this morning that she'd get lonely and home-sick for her old life, but, as it turned out, today had become the best day of her summer.

Quickly writing a note to her parents, to tell them of her good news, Hermione then sent the letter off with her owl.

Within an hour she received a note back.

**Congratulations Hermione! We are both so proud of you! I was prefect for Ravenclaw in my fifth and sixth years too! I guess it runs in the family! We promise to take out you out later this week to celebrate! We'd go tonight of course, but I'm sure you understand why we can't. On that note, our dinner guests will be arriving promptly at 6 tonight. I forgot to mention this earlier, as I wasn't sure if you knew or not, but please dress formally. Call it an odd wizarding custom, but these dinners are always formal for some odd reason. My recommendation would be the dark blue dress robes with the ¾ sleeves from Alice's with that adorable black cocktail dress I put on your rack this morning (ask Tessa if you can't find it). I'll be home at 4:45 to start getting ready myself. See you then darling!**

Hermione went to her closet. Her bedroom sized walk-in went from being nearly empty, to being nearly overflowing. Every wall was covered. One side had a wall sized shoe rack. Another had all muggle casual clothes. The third was filled with robes. And the fourth was half covered with formal muggle attire and the other half had a rather large accessories display. In the middle of the room was clothing rack with two items hanging off it. One was the dark blue robe from Alice's that Alice had insisted she get because it made her eyes stand out. The other was in a dress bag that said Gucci Magic on the side. Unaware that there even _was_ a Gucci in the magic world, Hermione proceeded carefully. Pinned to the bag was a note:

**Just try it on and it will be fitted to your body perfectly ~CL**

Curious, Hermione unzipped the bag. Inside was an adorable black satin dress. It had a babydoll cut and looked like it would end just above the knee. Accentuating the bust was delicate bronze embroidery. Hermione had never worn a dress like this before, and was nervous about how she would feel in it.

Throwing caution to the wind, Hermione quickly stripped down and pulled the dress over her head. It was loose at first, but within moments Hermione felt the dress shrinking in all the right places. It went in at the waist and clung to her figure. The dress flared out a bit at the hips, showing off her curvature perfectly. The bust adjusted itself so that the neckline was lower and her décolletage was showing just the right amount. Once she felt the dress finish its fitting, Hermione turned around to look in the mirror. Her jaw dropped. She looked… hot!

_The note was right. It _does_ fit me perfectly. _

Hermione checked the clock on the wall: Cora was due home in about 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…

"Hermione! Where are you darling?" She heard her mother calling for her in the hallway.

"I'm in my closet!" Hermione called back.

Within seconds Cora was through the door, looking excited.

She stopped and stared at her daughter, who was now uncomfortably fidgeting at the look of awe she was receiving from her mother.

"Hermione!" Cora gasped. "You look… so… grown up!" She exclaimed with a bit of wistful sadness hidden in her smile.

"Thanks mum…" Hermione muttered shyly. Then, with a little more confidence "This dress is so beautiful. Thank you for picking it out for me!"

"Oh, it was nothing, darling!" Cora said listlessly, her attention suddenly turned toward Hermione's shoe collection. "Let's see here: I don't think we need to go too fancy on the shoes, so how about these." Cora held up a pair of black satin ballet flats that matched the dress perfectly.

Hermione nodded, and took the shoes from her mother.

"Now darling, of course I'd love to stay and chat about everything—I'm so proud of you Hermione; a Ravenclaw AND a prefect all in one day!—but I really need to make my rounds. I want everything to be just perfect tonight!" Cora exclaimed, and then practically skipped from the closet.

Hermione smiled at the spot where her mother was just standing. _I wish I was more like her. She's so…bubbly! But in a fun way, not a Lavender and Pavarti annoying way. _

Carefully, Hermione took off the dress and put it back on the hanger and collected the dress, robe and shoes to her room. She laid them over her duvet and made her way to the bathroom/spa for a quick shower.

Still unused to the texture and manageability of her long smooth, and bushy-free dark brown hair, Hermione overestimated how much time she'd need in the shower, so she found herself with 5 extra minutes to just let the powerful hot stream spray down her back, relaxing her muscles, but not her mind. Whilst musing on the evening ahead, Hermione came to the realization that neither of her parents had mention exactly WHO was coming tonight.

_I wonder if it was deliberate. Maybe they didn't want me to know. But why? Why would they not want to tell me? They both seem pretty excited for this dinner, so I don't suppose they could be expecting anyone _bad._ After all, these are the people who helped clear my parents' names and find me. But I still don't understand why they don't want to tell me. Wait, no! It's not that they didn't want to tell me, they probably just never realized that they hadn't. It's ridiculous for me to think otherwise! _Hermione scolded herself and shook the thoughts from her head. _It's not like I won't find out eventually anyway. _

Stepping out of the shower and wrapping herself in a robe and her hair in a towel, Hermione made her way over to the vanity in her closet.

No longer requiring the miracle that is Sleekeazy to make her hair look smooth and silky, Hermione was unsure how to proceed. She wanted her hair to match the elegance of her dress robes, but was unsure how to go about it. She dried it with her wand. Even though she knew she shouldn't use magic outside of school, she figured that just this once would be okay. (A/N: it _is _an important dinner after all….)

After playing with it for a very frustrating five minutes, she gave up and just glared at her reflection. _Even now I can't make my hair behave!_ She thought huffily. Then an idea came to her.

"Tessa!" She called. Tessa popped into her room instantly.

"Yes, Miss? What can Tessa do for Miss?" The elf asked.

"Can you please find my mother and ask her to come up here if she's not too busy right now?" Hermione asked hurriedly, glancing at the clock. It was 20 minutes to six, and she still hadn't dressed.

"Of course, Miss! Miss' mother is never too busy for Miss!" The elf smiled and left with another pop.

Three minutes later an impeccably dressed Cora glided into the room. When she saw that Hermione was still in her robe, her smile faded, and her eyes widened.

"Hermione! Why on Earth aren't you dressed? They're going to be here in 15 minutes!" Cora panicked.

"I know! I'm sorry; it's just that I have no idea what to do with my hair! I've been messing with it but I can't get it to do what I want it to, and I really want to look perfect for tonight because I know how important this dinner is to you and I want to make a good impression…" Hermione rambled until her mother stopped her.

"You really are my daughter; you ramble just as much as I do." Cora laughed, and pulled out her wand. "How about this, I'll take care of your hair, and you apply your make-up. You won't need much, just a little to accent your features."

Cora used her wand to transform Hermione's dark tresses from straight and limp to wavy and volumized. She pulled back the top layer, leaving just a few strands to frame Hermione's face, and secured the rest of the layer at the back of her head with a few bobby pins. Then she moved the rest of her hair to cascade around her shoulders, and charmed it to stay in place but still move naturally.

Hermione applied a light amount of make up to her face. A touch of mascara just on the outside lashes (A/N: I find that it makes your eyes look bigger than if you do all of your lashes). She put a little bit of concealer under her eyes to hide her dark circles that she'd gained from reading late at night, and put on a clear gloss that was charmed to stay on all night.

The moment Hermione's hair and make-up were done, Cora practically threw the outfit at her daughter when she glanced at the clock again. "Quickly now, Darling, they'll be here any moment.

Hermione stepped into the dress and felt it zip itself and go through the same fitting routine as before. She slipped on the ballet flats and Cora slid the dress robes onto her arms and up to her shoulders. She then spun Hermione around so she could look herself in the mirror.

Hermione could hardly recognize herself. If it weren't for the image in the mirror reflecting back the awestruck smile Hermione knew she was doing she might not have believed it was really her at all.

"You look beautiful, darling!" Cora breathed, also taking in her daughter's reflection.

A small pop distracted them from their fawning.

"Mistress and Miss, the Malfoys have just arrived at the gate, they is almost at the door." Tessa said anxiously, knowing that her mistresses were required in the entrance hall almost immediately.

Cora gasped. Before Hermione could even register the fact that the MALFOYS of all people were the family they were expecting, Cora grabbed her wrist and Tessa's shoulder and the elf apparated them down stairs just as there was a knock at the door.

**A/N: So what'd you think? Liked it? Loved it? Hated it? I do hope it was worth the time I've spent doing the re-write, and I look forward to hearing what you all have to say! From here on out, everything will be new and never-before seen. Enjoy, I have some writing to get to it seems. =)**

**Luv ya,**

**Dreamysilverdragon08**


End file.
